Suddenly, Christine
by flossies
Summary: After missing rehearsal one too many times, the director of the local high school's production of "Little Shop of Horrors" is forced to give Christine Daae's role of "Audrey" away to a set painter, Meg Giry. When a fight involving the male lead of the production ensues, Mr. Reyer reluctantly puts Christine, who is determined to have her day of stardom, in the role of "Seymour"
1. Chapter 1

Rehearsals for the local high school's production of _Little Shop of Horrors_ were in full swing—teens belted out notes meant only for their adult counterparts and awkward stage interactions were becoming second nature after weeks of trial and error. Mr. Reyer, who was directing this year's musical, was livid because the leading lady was, once again, absent from rehearsal.

Christine Daaé was undoubtedly the best singer in the school. She was a senior, long flowing brown curls, big doe eyes, beautiful, and had an attitude like no other. She frequently missed rehearsals, because she "had better things to be doing." Christine's lack of care for the musical was appalling to Mr. Reyer, though he somehow managed to put up with it for three previous years.

Enough was enough, he decided. "If she doesn't take this seriously after I've given her the leading role, then _fine,"_ he announced to the cast. "Christine Daaé is no longer a part of this production." Everyone gasped and began murmuring to each other about how horribly Christine would react to hearing the news, how she wouldn't accept it. She would of course get her father to reverse Mr. Reyer's decision and steal the spotlight once more. Mr. Reyer thought of this also, but was determined that he could withstand the man's empty threats. "Now," he said, breathing deeply. "Who would like to play Audrey?"

The heart of every girl in the room soared at the question, but none of them dared to speak up. Whoever replaced Christine was bound for trouble of the worst kind from her and her best friend, Agatha Sorelli. Agatha was slightly older, already eighteen and tall as can be, and she was even fiercer than Christine. She had jet black hair, which she grew out and curled to be like her friend. Everyone feared the wrath of her silver-tongued remarks.

Soon, the silence that overtook the theater began to grow awkward. Cecile Jammes coughed and spoke up. "Perhaps Meg could play the part, sir?" to which Meg replied with a daggered stare into the back of Cecile's head. Cecile and Meg were the closest of friends, inseparable from the moment they met in kindergarten. Now, Meg was wondering if she'd made a mistake staying her friend all those years.

The rest of the kids scoffed. "I think she should stick to painting sets and running the lights," one of them remarked. The others began laughing. Meg looked down and blushed, ashamed.

Cecile touched her arm to comfort her. "Please, Meg, just try! I know you can do this."

Mr. Reyer hushed the group and smiled at her from behind the cast. "Yes, Meg, why not give it a shot?"

Meg's heart was about to burst from her chest, as all eyes were on her. She felt like her face was going to melt off from blushing so intensely. Nevertheless, she stepped forward. The teens that stood in her way did not separate for her until she bluntly said, "Excuse me." Everyone was too shocked that she was going to do this that they complied.

Mr. Reyer sat at the piano nearby. "Will 'Somewhere That's Green' be good for you? You surely know the words by now."

Meg nodded. She didn't want to announce to everyone that she already knew the lyrics by heart. The music began and she took a deep breath. Her cue to start singing hit, and she did.

 _"I know Seymour's the greatest,_

 _But I'm dating—"_

She looked at Cecile momentarily.

 _"A semi-sadist._

 _So, I got a black eye and my arm's in a cast._

 _Still that Seymour's a cutie._

 _Well, if not, he's got inner beauty."_

The group began to look around at each other in confusion. Was _Meg Giry_ really singing better than Christine? They couldn't believe it.

 _"And I dream of a place_

 _Where we could be together at last."_

She took another step forward and began to sing the song in the loveliest rendition Mr. Reyer had ever heard from a high school student. When it was over, Cecile and Mr. Reyer clapped, but everyone else was in stunned silence. Ignoring the rest, Mr. Reyer said, "Meg, my dear, congratulations! You are our new Audrey!"

Meg smiled brilliantly at first, but in turning around, seeing the hateful faces behind her, it fell. Mr. Reyer dismissed them, as he assumed Meg would need time to go over the script before rehearsing. "We meet here on Wednesday at seven!"

Meg waved at him as he left. He really was a kind man, just a little impatient. Cecile was practically vibrating next to her from excitement. "I can't believe it! My best friend is going to be a star!"

Meg, the older and more concerned of the two, replied with, "But who will finish the sets? And run the lights? And-"

She was interrupted as someone—a boy, the male lead, she didn't know his name—tripped her and she fell, her books scattering everywhere. "See you tomorrow, _Audrey,"_ he shouted as he ran away.

"Hey asshole, get back here and apologize to my friend!" Cecile shouted in his direction.

"You mean _girlfriend?"_ He was back with a gang of other boys across the theater at this point _,_ and they were all in uproarious laughter.

Cecile ignored them, which made them laugh even harder, and helped Meg to her feet. "Don't worry about those assholes," she yelled the word in their direction. "You'll do great."

Meg wasn't worried about how well she would do at rehearsals, she was worried about the consequences of even _being there._

Christine marched down the hallway towards Mr. Reyer's room. Everyone made way for her, as she was determined not to be delayed. She parted the masses like the Red Sea. As she slammed the door open, Meg jumped where she stood. It was about two minutes after the final bell had rung, and Meg was practicing for rehearsals with Mr. Reyer during the entirety of study hall—her last period of the day.

"Mr. Reyer!" Christine shouted, finding his eyes. "I seem to have encountered a problem. I hear that you have replaced me!" She laughed. "Which is really quite impossible, you see, because who could replace me?" She looked at Meg for support in her inquiry.

Meg shifted uncomfortably. "Actually, um," she began.

"I hear you replaced me with some dull little girl who paints sets!" Christine chuckled. Meg flinched at the comment. "Can you believe it?" Again, the question was directed at Meg, as she was the only one in the nearby vicinity. Meg didn't get the chance to correct her.

"Christine, you have missed rehearsal too many times. You are out of the play. Meg has taken the role of Audrey," said Mr. Reyer. He sounded firm at first, but his authoritative tone wavered towards the end of his statement. Perhaps he was just as afraid of Christine as the rest of the school. Or maybe he was afraid of what she would get her father to do.

Christine scoffed. "And just who, may I ask, is this _Meg_?"

Mr. Reyer looked at her with a confused expression before turning to Meg, waiting for her to speak. Christine followed his gaze.

"Hi," she said shyly with a little wave.

Christine's eyes bugged out of her skull as they made their way upwards to meet Meg's. _So,_ this whole time she had been talking to her _competition,_ asking her to back her up! Outrageous. She needed to calm down before she ripped the girl's plain wavy blonde hair out of her scalp in frustration.

She took a deep breath, still staring at Meg—a little intimidated by her height. Christine was only a measly five feet, where Meg was a "towering" five feet and six inches. Her eyes slowly made their way back to Mr. Reyer, who looked very amused with Christine's reaction.

"Christine, listen, if you ask nicely and apologize, I'll let you be an extra," he said defeatedly.

"An _extra_?" Christine spat out the word like it was a curse. "I can't be an extra in my senior musical, do you know how embarrassing that is?"

"No," he replied, smirking. "I'm afraid I don't."

"Well, it's really embarrassing!"

Meg stood there in silence, watching the two bicker about Christine's possible role as an extra, when a freshman ran into the room with a panicked disposition. "Joseph Buquet is beating the shit out of Erik! Quick, come see!"

Mr. Reyer quickly made his way out the door with Christine still yelling after him. He knew this wouldn't be good. Joseph Buquet was the male lead of the musical, Seymour, and if he got expelled then Mr. Reyer would have no one to play the part, as the vast majority of the school's cast was female. He already had to have one girl, Emily, play the part of Seymour's adoptive father, Mr. Mushnik, and even that was stretching it.

As he exited the room to break up the fight, Christine gave up yelling and turned to Meg. _Oh boy,_ Meg thought as Christine's big brown eyes burning with hatred made their way back up to her green ones.

"Now _listen,_ " she said, jabbing her finger into the air. "I am going to play the lead, and that is final."

"But, er, Christine," Meg struggled. "Mr. Reyer told me that the part was mine, since you didn't seem to really want it." Her voice was full of innocence and genuine confusion. She didn't understand why Christine would skip rehearsal so often and still want the part.

Christine's eyes somehow widened even further. "Look, _Meg,_ I don't care what Mr. Reyer says. I _will_ be starring in this production." She broke their gaze and began to turn away.

"Why does it matter so much?" Meg asked plainly, a little irritated.

Christine froze in her tracks and sighed quietly, whispering so that it was barely audible, "It just does."


	2. Chapter 2

Joseph Buquet was indeed expelled the next day for beating the daylights out of poor unhappy Erik, much to Mr. Reyer's displeasure. He sat at his desk, fuming over how to attend to the situation at hand. Having a girl play Seymour was a ridiculous idea to him, but no other boy had a powerful enough voice for the part. He really only had two options left: replace Joseph with a girl, or cancel the show completely. It was with a reluctant sigh that he opened the computer file which contained the small playbill for the program. He deleted the text corresponding with the role of Seymour, "Joseph Buquet," and wrote in a new name. He stared at the screen blankly and then collapsed his arms and head onto the desk. "We're doomed."

Christine stared up at Mr. Reyer vacantly. "You want me…" she began slowly for emphasis. "To play _a boy_?!" What he told her had blown her away. _There's no way in hell!_ She thought.

Mr. Reyer had stopped her in the hallway to tell her about his new grand plan. "Christine, please, you're the only one in the cast with the vocal range to at least somewhat mirror the notes." Mr. Reyer pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Besides," he said, removing his hand from his face. "You'll be the lead. Imagine, an even bigger role than Audrey!" His tone was goading her into believing him that it was a good idea.

She reflected on that notion, her teenaged craving for stardom overtaking her. "I… I suppose that's true." She was giving in, much to Mr. Reyer's satisfaction. He would have a show one way or another.

"Good. Then this time _come to rehearsal._ It starts after school today at seven."

Christine grumbled. "Fine," she said, walking away from him and to her next class.

Mr. Reyer knew he shouldn't be giving Christine the role, he needed to set an example that missing rehearsal is _not_ acceptable in the least, but he was out of options. He sighed, turning to go to his classroom, the choir room. The period prior to the one beginning was his prep hour, and he had spent nearly half of the time trying to figure out the best way to tell Christine the news. He figured it was best to just be outright with it.

He walked into his classroom just as the bell rang, and wondering faces looked up at him. In a tired tone, he instructed the class to start singing. The school day was only half over, and he knew the rest of it would drag on.

Seven o'clock came faster than expected, and cast members leisurely strolled into the theater. Meg was one of the first people there, eager to begin. Christine was surprisingly on time—perhaps it was more surprising that she even showed up.

Meg glanced at Christine, who was very loudly talking to Emily. "Yep, that's right. Mr. Reyer was so desperate that he asked me, of all people, to _star_ in the show!" Meg had apparently caught the tail end of their conversation. In hearing this, her heart dropped. _Had Mr. Reyer changed his mind?_

She listened for more. Emily stared in disbelief at Christine. "But you'll be playing a boy! Doesn't that bother you?"

"Oh, no, I was worried about it at first but then I realized that Seymour plays an even bigger role than Audrey!" she explained excitedly. "I'll get my day of fame and outshine that set painter—what's her name?"

Emily didn't remember, so Christine shrugged. "Anyway, I'll be killing two birds with one stone!"

Meg couldn't believe what she was hearing. _Christine_ was going to be playing Seymour. She'd heard about the fight Joseph got into, but she didn't really think he'd get kicked out for it. Though, she was a little comforted in knowing that her part had not been given away.

Mr. Reyer stood among them and began clapping to hush everyone and signal that it was time to begin rehearsal. "We have had yet another unexpected change in cast, I'm afraid," he said wearily. Perking up, he went on: "Christine will be co-starring in the production once more, as she has replaced Joseph Buquet."

Of course, everyone knew this by now. Christine had bragged about her new role to almost the entirety of the school within just a few hours. " _Co-_ starring?" came from her mouth immediately after Mr. Reyer had spoken.

"Yes, co-starring. Now both of you, come here." He looked from her to Meg.

Meg stepped over to him quietly, keeping an eye on Christine who rolled her eyes and began walking over to meet them. "I want you to get to know each other. You'll be spending lots of time together in the musical, and I don't want the animosity between you two to be seen onstage. Got it?"

Meg raised a brow. _Animosity?_ She hardly knew Christine, so she couldn't really hate her, but she worried that Christine might feel differently. It's true, she had taken her role, but she couldn't possibly see that she'd be upset about it still considering the one she ended up with was bigger and better.

Christine was about to speak in objection to Mr. Reyer's plan, when he interrupted her. "Christine, you have to be believable." He tried his hardest not to roll his eyes when he said, "Think of your fans."

She pondered this, and thought better than to complain further. "Good," Mr. Reyer said. "Now go practice lines while I try to burn the lyrics of 'Skid Row' into the memory of the ensemble." He clapped his hands once more, leaving the two to go over lines. "Alright people, let's make magic!"

As he walked away to gather the remaining group, Christine and Meg made awkward eye contact. "So," Meg said, looking down, attempting to break the tension. She curled hair in her fingers, trying to ease away the nervousness she felt about being near Christine. The girl really was intimidating, and after their encounter the day before, also considering what Mr. Reyer had said about their supposed hatred of one another, she was understandably concerned.

"So," Christine replied slowly. "What's your name again?" She figured she should at least know the girl's name if they were to work together, as much as she loathed the idea of sharing the spotlight with anyone.

"It's Meg."

"Meg. Huh."

"Yep."

They were both looking at their feet, content to stay silent for the rest of rehearsal, when Mr. Reyer yelled in their direction. "I don't hear _lines,_ ladies."

Christine rolled her eyes and took a deep breath. She looked down at the script she brought with her. "Where should we start?"

Meg flipped the script she had been given on Monday open and pointed to a particular section. "I think here should be good." She waited for Christine to open her script to the correct page, and cleared her voice to begin. "You know, sometimes I think Mr. Mushnik's too hard on you." Her regular voice had vanished, and a new accented one came forth.

Christine fought back a smile at hearing Meg's new accent. She dropped her eyes from Meg's and found her line. "Oh, I don't mind. After all, I owe him everything. He took me out of the Skid Row Home for Boys when I was just a little tyke." She scrunched her face at the implication that she was a boy, but figured she would have to get used to it sooner or later. It's the price she paid for being the lead, she thought. "Gave me a nice warm place to sleep under the counter. Nice things to eat like meatloaf and water. Floors to sweep, and toilets to clean, and every other Sunday off."

Meg stifled a laugh. Christine really was making it believable, and she found the lines hilarious. "You know, I think you ought to raise your expectations, Seymour." It felt peculiar calling _Christine,_ who was likely the most feminine girl in the school, "Seymour," but she went on. "Now that you're getting successful, I mean. Why don't you start with some new clothes?" Christine crossed her arms, in character. "No offence, but what with all the interviews and photo sessions, a big experimental botanist has to look the part."

"I'm a very bad shopper, Audrey." Christine's eyes widened at the next sentence she read, and she struggled to say it aloud. "I don't have good taste…like you."

"Well, I could help you pick things out." Meg was unfazed.

"You could?"

"Sure!"

"You'd go shopping with me?"

"Sure."

"You'd be seen with me in a public place, _like a department store_?"

Meg lost it and began laughing. God, she loved this musical. The way Christine executed the lines was great, too. Christine joined in her laughter. She had to admit that the character was pretty funny (although nothing like herself, she swore.) Saying the lines made her smile, and she wondered why they never had before. Perhaps it was the role switch.

Mr. Reyer looked on from a distance and his brow raised at the two laughing girls. _Well,_ he thought. _That's new._

Christine's smile fell as she looked up and saw the time. "I have to go," she said seriously. Meg was confused, but didn't argue. She turned to leave, but stopped briefly. "If you want to practice lines, maybe I can come to your house sometime soon. Next rehearsal isn't 'til Friday."

Meg was blown away at hearing this. Sure, she didn't know Christine, but she knew enough about her to know that she never took things seriously. This was bizarrely uncharacteristic of her, to want to go over lines _outside_ of rehearsal. _Hell,_ she thought. _It's uncharacteristic of her to go over lines_ in _rehearsal._ Nonetheless, Meg nodded. She knew all the roles by heart, but it would do her good to practice.

"Give me your address."

Meg began to walk towards her bag to grab some paper and a pen when Christine placed her hand on her arm, stopping her in her tracks.

"Tell me. I'll remember."

She blankly recited the address for her, staring down at the girl before her. With that, Christine hurriedly slipped out the back of the auditorium.

 _Well,_ she thought, her mind racing. _That's new._


End file.
